A monthly missive exploring how to put theory into action and shift humanity from "me" to "we."
By age ten, I had endured two parental divorces. With a sense of security shattered, I was confident I did not want to pass that pain on to another human being. So, knowing what I knew, I proclaimed to my mom that I would not have offspring, and no one questioned me again until my twenties when the rubber hit the road.
September 2024
Like the simple joy, I derived from the warped rainbow of a gas station screen, being seen, heard, and understood lifts us like a cloud and keeps us aloft for more than a minute. Further, it depolarizes the perceived distance between "me" and "we" and helps us recognize the unique, one-of-a-kind beauty in all of us.
August 2024
The key is to be in active practice by exhibiting curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness. Then, we can better understand where someone is coming from.
May 2024
As a unique human among over eight billion one-of-a-kind travelers, we all have in common that we want to be seen, heard, and understood by our fellow adventurers and for them to make a sincere effort to understand better where we are coming from.
December 2023
As the leaders of our lives, through repetition, we can learn to regulate our emotional responses. When we better understand ourselves, our ability to appreciate the lived experience of someone else is all that much easier. With the ease of a newfound understanding, we galvanize greater compassion and less hate.
November 2023
It was just me, the majestic one, and a dazzling moment that left me feeling that I, alone, was chosen to be a part of the sun’s larger conversation with Travis County.
September 2023
The effort to quiet our mind is akin to the practice of empathy - to find ourselves, we must first think beyond ourselves.
May 2023
Empathy is a part of every aspect of our lives, work, and communities; therefore, storytelling, like art, is measured by its timelessness.
October 2022
As I catch my breath and wipe away tears, I cannot help but wonder, is the intention behind acts of hate to silence the voices of the majority so that our outrage becomes mute?
July 2022
Since we are all human, our responses will be individually different. However, a lack of inclusion and a sense of belonging is relatable to all of us.
May 2022
We are all someone else's "other." As you continue to shift gears, keep your eyes out for me to we, mile-marker #1.
April 2022
Since we are the leaders of our own life, our leadership burden is ours alone.
March 2022
As we reckon with a past that did not serve us well, it is painful to have hard conversations. Yet, to heal from the shame in all of us, we must bring these unspoken truths into the light.
February 2022
I wish that 2-0-2-2 is the year we collectively put empathy into action through curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness.
January 2022
Even if we are not directly impacted by [insert topic here], what happens to one, happens to all.
September 2021
When I cast my gaze outward, I see people who, like me, have a personal history and heart, a heart that keeps blood pumping through their bodies.
August 2021
As I clumsily practiced casting and line mending, I applied this teaching to empathy and how we have all learned to mend the pandemic line over the past year and a half+.
July 2021
When you find yourself becoming too stationary, I encourage pivoting to greater compassion and less hate.
June 2021
Our common ground is found in agreement that there is nothing more important than an in-person exchange, the up-close and personal kind of encounters that bring a seismic shift to otherwise entrenched positions.
April 2021
Since we all live life through our lens, it is crucial that we also recognize our perception of events is likely very different than someone else's.
March 2021
What is irreplaceable is the humanity of the moment and how empathy took center stage.
February 24, 2021
As I laced up my snow boots and bundled up in my knee-length puffer coat, I felt the residual weight from the shocking events of January 6, 2021, lift.
January 13, 2021
Ahhh. The velvet hands of exclusivity.
The satisfaction of belonging, being seen and heard.
You know, that feeling when you go to your neighborhood coffee shop and receive a welcoming "hello [insert your name here]!”
December 9, 2020
I thought about the importance of stopping to smell the actual and metaphoric flowers in the garden of our lives and how listening to learn is not just the behavior we should engage in with others; more importantly, we should be in steadfast empathy in action practice with the person who matters most: yourself.
July 2024
As we sat in the same spot for what seemed like hours (more like 75 minutes), I thought about the honesty of empathy when we don't overcomplicate what it feels like to be seen, heard, and understood.
June 2024
The key is to be in active practice by exhibiting curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness. Then, we can better understand where someone is coming from.
May 2024
Being exactly who we are is not always easy, but a presence of dignity and respect bolsters our resolve.
April 2024
You likely experience the power of empathy every day, be it at your favorite coffee shop, dry cleaner, work, or home. Take time today to notice how a presence of empathy compels you to keep returning while an absence urges you to move on.
January 2024
As the leaders of our lives, through repetition, we can learn to regulate our emotional responses. When we better understand ourselves, our ability to appreciate the lived experience of someone else is all that much easier. With the ease of a newfound understanding, we galvanize greater compassion and less hate.
November 2023
Like the end of an incredible Texas thunderstorm, we introduce quietude when we forgo the theory of what we should be doing by allowing ourselves self-empathy through seeing, hearing, and understanding where we emotionally are.
August 2023
As we peek out from behind the darkness of the past, recall that we have more in common than not - we have collectively lost, changed, and will rise again. Together.
July 2023
Being mindfully present and engaging in hard conversations is a choice that can be challenging. Still, simple acts of humanity, such as saying hello, smiling, and acknowledging someone by name, creates a connection that fosters greater compassion and less hate.
June 2023
The effort to quiet our mind is akin to the practice of empathy - to find ourselves, we must first think beyond ourselves.
May 2023
I imagine you, too, have had moments I would love to hear about, where you felt the wind beneath your wings through a reminder that human connection matters most.
April 2023
Sharing empathy is something we all want and deserve, and often that feeling comes when someone listens to learn rather than to respond.
March 2023
I was far from home with no friends in the area, so I desperately needed what we all want: to be seen, heard, and understood.
February 2023
Seeing, hearing, and understanding is more than a one-and-done box to be checked.
January 2023
Empathy is a part of every aspect of our lives, work, and communities; therefore, storytelling, like art, is measured by its timelessness.
October 2022
To succeed, we must look beyond ourselves and realize that if we want to grow personally, we must be vulnerable and open to receiving feedback that we may not necessarily like to hear.
September 2022
I knew that opening hands and hearts would be challenging and that opportunity and fear would show up simultaneously.
August 2022
As I catch my breath and wipe away tears, I cannot help but wonder, is the intention behind acts of hate to silence the voices of the majority so that our outrage becomes mute?
July 2022
Like you, I am angry. I am heartbroken, and I have firm opinions. However, I also realize that as comfortable as I am staying within the narrow confines of like-mindedness, change does not occur in isolation.
June 2022
Since we are all human, our responses will be individually different. However, a lack of inclusion and a sense of belonging is relatable to all of us.
May 2022
We are all someone else's "other." As you continue to shift gears, keep your eyes out for me to we, mile-marker #1.
April 2022
Since we are the leaders of our own life, our leadership burden is ours alone.
March 2022
As we reckon with a past that did not serve us well, it is painful to have hard conversations. Yet, to heal from the shame in all of us, we must bring these unspoken truths into the light.
February 2022
I wish that 2-0-2-2 is the year we collectively put empathy into action through curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness.
January 2022
Let my myopic focus at that moment serve as a lesson in empathy for all of us.
October 2021
The storms of life mean to challenge and help us to flourish. While our responses are independent of one another, the journey taken is by all.
May 2021
Like you, over the last year, I have learned to live with a lot less. This less has actually become more given the reblossoming of dormant creativity and shock-testing of my ability to build a structure from chaos.
February 10, 2021
I am unsure if the recent Wolf Moon, global pandemic, social and political unrest, or winter blues have got my internal compass spinning, but I cannot point my arrow in any specific direction for the life of me.
February 3, 2021
I am a proud American who has inhabited both sides of the political coin. Raised in Eastern Washington "AgCountry," I cut my teeth in the melting pot of the Big Apple.
January 20, 2021
Do you know that feeling when you meet someone and walk away from the conversation knowing that your paths crossed not by chance, but instead, by fate?
Last week, fate intervened and blessed me with one such occasion.
December 23, 2020
Miss Georgia's genuine gratitude humbled and reminded me that I was with a fellow human who deserved my entire focus. Thus, putting her needs above mine in that moment helped me to see beyond myself.
October 2024
By age ten, I had endured two parental divorces. With a sense of security shattered, I was confident I did not want to pass that pain on to another human being. So, knowing what I knew, I proclaimed to my mom that I would not have offspring, and no one questioned me again until my twenties when the rubber hit the road.
September 2024
Like the simple joy, I derived from the warped rainbow of a gas station screen, being seen, heard, and understood lifts us like a cloud and keeps us aloft for more than a minute. Further, it depolarizes the perceived distance between "me" and "we" and helps us recognize the unique, one-of-a-kind beauty in all of us.
August 2024
I thought about the importance of stopping to smell the actual and metaphoric flowers in the garden of our lives and how listening to learn is not just the behavior we should engage in with others; more importantly, we should be in steadfast empathy in action practice with the person who matters most: yourself.
July 2024
As we sat in the same spot for what seemed like hours (more like 75 minutes), I thought about the honesty of empathy when we don't overcomplicate what it feels like to be seen, heard, and understood.
June 2024
Still, I will illuminate how the kindness of strangers, who have since become friends, reminds me that while we may not always visually recognize empathy when we see it, the heart-warming feeling of its presence is undeniable.
March 2024
When we step prominently out of the shadows of apathy and into the light of empathy, we demonstrate a willingness to listen to learn rather than respond.
February 2024
You likely experience the power of empathy every day, be it at your favorite coffee shop, dry cleaner, work, or home. Take time today to notice how a presence of empathy compels you to keep returning while an absence urges you to move on.
January 2024
As a unique human among over eight billion one-of-a-kind travelers, we all have in common that we want to be seen, heard, and understood by our fellow adventurers and for them to make a sincere effort to understand better where we are coming from.
December 2023
The remarkable thing about dignity is that when we grace each other with inclusion that comes from being empathetic, bonds of trust and mutual respect are forged. The strength of this bond shores up loyalty.
October 2023
It was just me, the majestic one, and a dazzling moment that left me feeling that I, alone, was chosen to be a part of the sun’s larger conversation with Travis County.
September 2023
As we peek out from behind the darkness of the past, recall that we have more in common than not - we have collectively lost, changed, and will rise again. Together.
July 2023
I was far from home with no friends in the area, so I desperately needed what we all want: to be seen, heard, and understood.
February 2023
Seeing, hearing, and understanding is more than a one-and-done box to be checked.
January 2023
As I catch my breath and wipe away tears, I cannot help but wonder, is the intention behind acts of hate to silence the voices of the majority so that our outrage becomes mute?
July 2022
Like you, I am angry. I am heartbroken, and I have firm opinions. However, I also realize that as comfortable as I am staying within the narrow confines of like-mindedness, change does not occur in isolation.
June 2022
Since we are all human, our responses will be individually different. However, a lack of inclusion and a sense of belonging is relatable to all of us.
May 2022
We are all someone else's "other." As you continue to shift gears, keep your eyes out for me to we, mile-marker #1.
April 2022
Since we are the leaders of our own life, our leadership burden is ours alone.
March 2022
As we reckon with a past that did not serve us well, it is painful to have hard conversations. Yet, to heal from the shame in all of us, we must bring these unspoken truths into the light.
February 2022
I wish that 2-0-2-2 is the year we collectively put empathy into action through curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness.
January 2022
Who does not want to be respected? To be seen? To be heard? And, at times, to be left the heck alone.
November 2021
Even if we are not directly impacted by [insert topic here], what happens to one, happens to all.
September 2021
When I cast my gaze outward, I see people who, like me, have a personal history and heart, a heart that keeps blood pumping through their bodies.
August 2021
As I clumsily practiced casting and line mending, I applied this teaching to empathy and how we have all learned to mend the pandemic line over the past year and a half+.
July 2021
Since we all live life through our lens, it is crucial that we also recognize our perception of events is likely very different than someone else's.
March 2021
As we hang up our human-created paper calendar, we are also in a position to reframe how we choose to show up in conversation with one another.
January 6, 2021
To move forward, we must first look back.
Remember this time last year?
What were you looking forward to as we approached a new decade?
December 30, 2020
Do you know that feeling when you meet someone and walk away from the conversation knowing that your paths crossed not by chance, but instead, by fate?
Last week, fate intervened and blessed me with one such occasion.
December 23, 2020
At War.
Lately, everyday feels like a battle.
A fight for our livelihood.
A struggle to be heard.
October 30, 2020
Being exactly who we are is not always easy, but a presence of dignity and respect bolsters our resolve.
April 2024
As we peek out from behind the darkness of the past, recall that we have more in common than not - we have collectively lost, changed, and will rise again. Together.
July 2023
Sharing empathy is something we all want and deserve, and often that feeling comes when someone listens to learn rather than to respond.
March 2023
We must acknowledge that no two lived experiences are the same, and just like us, our conversation partner is priceless.
November 2022
As I catch my breath and wipe away tears, I cannot help but wonder, is the intention behind acts of hate to silence the voices of the majority so that our outrage becomes mute?
July 2022
Since we are all human, our responses will be individually different. However, a lack of inclusion and a sense of belonging is relatable to all of us.
May 2022
We are all someone else's "other." As you continue to shift gears, keep your eyes out for me to we, mile-marker #1.
April 2022
Since we are the leaders of our own life, our leadership burden is ours alone.
March 2022
As we reckon with a past that did not serve us well, it is painful to have hard conversations. Yet, to heal from the shame in all of us, we must bring these unspoken truths into the light.
February 2022
I wish that 2-0-2-2 is the year we collectively put empathy into action through curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness.
January 2022
As a life-long learner, I realized long ago that the hard lesson would continue to confront me until I learned. But, once enlightened, we receive liberation from that which no longer serves us.
December 2021
Who does not want to be respected? To be seen? To be heard? And, at times, to be left the heck alone.
November 2021
As I clumsily practiced casting and line mending, I applied this teaching to empathy and how we have all learned to mend the pandemic line over the past year and a half+.
July 2021
Do you know that feeling when you meet someone and walk away from the conversation knowing that your paths crossed not by chance, but instead, by fate?
Last week, fate intervened and blessed me with one such occasion.
December 23, 2020
I composed my first song at the age of 13.
While I could not write music, I could hear a symphony in my head. So, I put a pencil to paper and wrote words to fit the cacophony vibrating around in my noggin.
December 16, 2020
In 2009, my immediate family and I spent three all-consuming days taking in the sights, sounds, and sins of Sin City.
While all of this was rousing, the most epic part took place 14,000 feet in the air just outside of the Las Vegas city limits.
November 25, 2020
I have always been a calculated risk taker.
Switch backing over the course of the last three decades from my home state of Washington to New York, California, and now Austin, TX, I strategize how to get to where I am going and then I go.
November 11, 2020
A scrappy kid to this day, I have never been one in search of motivation.
So when of age came knocking this then kid, in search of inspiration, was packed in a flash and ready to leave farm country for the grand adventure that is adulthood.
October 30, 2020
Being exactly who we are is not always easy, but a presence of dignity and respect bolsters our resolve.
April 2024
Like the end of an incredible Texas thunderstorm, we introduce quietude when we forgo the theory of what we should be doing by allowing ourselves self-empathy through seeing, hearing, and understanding where we emotionally are.
August 2023
Being mindfully present and engaging in hard conversations is a choice that can be challenging. Still, simple acts of humanity, such as saying hello, smiling, and acknowledging someone by name, creates a connection that fosters greater compassion and less hate.
June 2023
Sharing empathy is something we all want and deserve, and often that feeling comes when someone listens to learn rather than to respond.
March 2023
We must acknowledge that no two lived experiences are the same, and just like us, our conversation partner is priceless.
November 2022
Empathy is a part of every aspect of our lives, work, and communities; therefore, storytelling, like art, is measured by its timelessness.
October 2022
I knew that opening hands and hearts would be challenging and that opportunity and fear would show up simultaneously.
August 2022
Since we are all human, our responses will be individually different. However, a lack of inclusion and a sense of belonging is relatable to all of us.
May 2022
We are all someone else's "other." As you continue to shift gears, keep your eyes out for me to we, mile-marker #1.
April 2022
Since we are the leaders of our own life, our leadership burden is ours alone.
March 2022
As we reckon with a past that did not serve us well, it is painful to have hard conversations. Yet, to heal from the shame in all of us, we must bring these unspoken truths into the light.
February 2022
I wish that 2-0-2-2 is the year we collectively put empathy into action through curiosity, vulnerability, compassion, and selflessness.
January 2022
As a life-long learner, I realized long ago that the hard lesson would continue to confront me until I learned. But, once enlightened, we receive liberation from that which no longer serves us.
December 2021
Who does not want to be respected? To be seen? To be heard? And, at times, to be left the heck alone.
November 2021
Let my myopic focus at that moment serve as a lesson in empathy for all of us.
October 2021
When you find yourself becoming too stationary, I encourage pivoting to greater compassion and less hate.
June 2021
Like you, over the last year, I have learned to live with a lot less. This less has actually become more given the reblossoming of dormant creativity and shock-testing of my ability to build a structure from chaos.
February 10, 2021
I am unsure if the recent Wolf Moon, global pandemic, social and political unrest, or winter blues have got my internal compass spinning, but I cannot point my arrow in any specific direction for the life of me.
February 3, 2021
Hankering for in-person connection, I took the scenic route over the weekend and met up with my friends, who live not too far outside of San Antonio.
January 27, 2021
As we hang up our human-created paper calendar, we are also in a position to reframe how we choose to show up in conversation with one another.
January 6, 2021
To move forward, we must first look back.
Remember this time last year?
What were you looking forward to as we approached a new decade?
December 30, 2020
Do you know that feeling when you meet someone and walk away from the conversation knowing that your paths crossed not by chance, but instead, by fate?
Last week, fate intervened and blessed me with one such occasion.
December 23, 2020
Halloween is my favorite time of the year.
With full disclosure, my adoration is twofold: 1) I am an October baby, and 2) the tenth-month signals 31 days of black and orange-themed festivities.
November 4, 2020
As a once New Yorker, I am stunned to learn that due to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 the stage of the Metropolitan Opera will officially be dark until the fall of 2021.
October 30, 2020